As the new ball partner of statemate Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad was an important member of the Indian team from his debut in 1996 until he was passed over in 2001. Tall and proportionally built, Prasad's great strength is that he could move the ball both ways. A deceptive slower ball also proved an useful weapon. Not surprisingly, Venky achieved better figures in more helpful conditions abroad than at home, where the slow, bald tracks did not encouraged his mode of attack. Yet, paradoxically enough, his most devastating spell came at Chennai where, in the first Test in January 1999, he brought Pakistan's second innings to a swift end with figures of 6 for 33, which included a spell of 5 for 0. A calm, unruffled team man, Prasad's effective seam bowling was also invaluable to the country in the shorter version of the game. Following retirement, he took to coaching, training the Under-19 side and later taking over as coach of his state side Karnataka. He was appointed India's bowling coach for the tour of Bangladesh in May 2007. Prasad received praise from various members of the Indian squad and worked well with India's promising new-ball pair, Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma. In that role, he was involved in feats he did not taste during his playing career - Test series wins in England and New Zealand. However, two disappointing performances by the bowlers in the major ICC events of 2009 cost him his job. He also worked as bowling coach for the IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings.
Cricinfo staff

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